Love Makes The World Go Round
by Maurever
Summary: A collection of bite-sized oneshots for a wild variety and number of pairings, as I work my way through the Shipper's List writing anything that catches my eye.
1. Apocalypse

Apocalypshipping (Seto x Ishizu x Yami Marik)

"What is going ON?" Mai fell onto Joey as the blimp lurched again, and quickly jumped off. "I thought my duel with Marik was in an hour?"

"It was," Yami agreed, bracing himself in a corner for dear life, "but there seems to be something odd going on. I heard that there's some other pair dueling up there, a spontaneous challenge…"

"Well, why doesn't Seto put an end to it?" Anzu demanded, catching herself from a fall with dancer's grace and grabbing a handle in the wall. "He kept on going on and on about how he didn't want anyone dueling outside of the arranged times!"

Ryou stumbled into the corridor from the end leading to the top of the blimp, which was now lurching like a ship. His face was pale and his eyes wide. "You won't believe this," he gasped, "but Seto's one of the duelists!"

Everyone stared. "Who is he dueling, and why?" Yugi finally inquired, taking over from Yami.

The pale boy shook his head. "You wouldn't believe me. You have to come see."

With much difficulty, they finally made their way to the viewing platform; struck into silence, they stared open-mouthed at the scene below.

Seto and Yami Marik were making the blimp rock with the force of their dueling, throwing their most powerful forces at each other without mercy. Ishizu was on the sidelines, yelling at them both. But it was the dialogue that was really causing the slack jaws of the general company.

"My Blue Eyes White Dragon will destroy your monsters with ease!" Seto yelled. "And then I will have rid my darling Ishizu of her greatest enemy!"

"Stop being so dramatic, Seto!" the Egyptian woman yelled.

"You think she wants that, rich boy?" the dark spirit sneered, shadows gathering around him as he readied another card. "It's you who'll be watching helpless from the Shadow Realm as I claim Ishizu as my Queen!"

"Stop making my brother's body say things like that, you pervert!"

"Hah! See, spirit? It IS me she wants!"

"Shut up! I don't like either of you!"

After a good few minutes of staring, everyone exchanged glances.

Seto and Yami Marik dueling for the love of Ishizu?

Joey voiced everyone's thoughts.

"It's the end of the world, isn't it?"


	2. Very Apt

_Aptshipping ( Honda x Ishizu )_

_A/N: Well, I saw this pairing and thought "'Tristan' and Ishizu? Who would write that?" laughed, and a moment after said with a sinking feeling, "I would…" But that ended up turning out longer and cuter than I expected. I'm kind of pleased with it. _

He had a crush on her.

She first realized it a long time after they had met, even though his actions from the very beginning had showed it - the way he opened doors for her, stood aside to let her go first, would offer her the shelter of his umbrella on a rainy day - clumsy, boyish acts of chivalry that made her smile. He was cute, in his own awkward big-boned way, the odd one out in the group of friends he belonged to - most either smaller and weaker than him, or completely wrapped up in Duel Monsters. He gave the impression, walking a little behind the rest of them with his hands in his pockets, that he should be saying, "Hello, I'm a bit lost. Could you direct me to the nearest action/adventure anime?"

She had felt a bit of an odd one out as well when they first met; maybe that was why she enjoyed his company, accepted his kindness gladly, and gave him a job as her personal aide when there was danger of him moving away from the museum. Somehow, she couldn't bear the thought of not seeing him again - hear his easy laugh, have him open her car door or offer her his jacket on a cold day.

Maybe it was all their little, odd connections that had led to the scene when they were both working late. When she had told him he had better go home before midnight, as it was White Day tomorrow and he probably had a special someone to meet, and he had replied that he'd stay a little longer. When the clock had struck the minute after twelve and he had marched over to her, leant down and kissed her firmly but chastely on the lips. "There!" he had announced, ears turning red. "I've met her. Now can I stay?"

That was when she really realized he had a crush on her.

And, funnily enough, that was the day she realized that she had a bit of a crush on him as well.


	3. Quite Arrogant

_Arrogantshipping ( Seto x Mai)_

_A/N: My sister's favorite so far… I wasn't going to try this at first, but then the image of Mai yelling at Seto popped into my head and this spilled out. It was actually quite fun to write._

"I will not be a trophy wife!" Mai yelled.

Seto blinked down at the blonde woman getting in his face. "What? All I did was suggest coffee sometime, and you start screaming nonsense?"

"Oh, I know how your mind works, Seto Kaiba," Mai insisted, shaking her fist under his nose. "You start out with something innocent, like coffee 'just between employer and employee'. Then comes the slow changing of meetings into dates. Then, one day, you'll figure the time is right and make sure a date goes the right way - and bam! We're sleeping together."

"Aren't you over thinking this?"

"Only as much as you're thinking it!" She glared. "Let… me… finish." Her blue eyes crackled with anger.

"Sorry for interrupting your delusion, Mai…" Seto muttered.

"Then something else goes wrong… or right, according to your plans! I get pregnant. You, of course, have no idea how it could have happened, are profusely apologetic, and insist on doing the right thing - marriage! And once we're married, you're set! Keeping me at home doing all the housework organizing, looking after children, being-" she shuddered "responsible… with no freedom, as nothing more than something for you to flash around! 'And here's my wife, Mai Valentine. You might have heard she was tough, but I got her to marry me!' Well, sorry Seto, your plans are not going to work!"

She snapped her fingers under his nose and stomped off towards her motorcycle, driving past him in a moment - then turning as she crossed the street and blowing him a kiss. Seto stared. How could the woman be so contradictory? It was strangely intriguing…

On her motorcycle, Mai gave a secret smile. Part one of plan, check; Seto was fascinated with her now. Now all that was left was play hard to get… finally relent a little and start dating him… fake a crisis of emotion to make him marry her… and keep on fascinating him while continuing her usual hectic lifestyle, now the woman who had conquered Seto Kaiba.

"Maybe that plan's not too bad…" Seto muttered to himself, on the driveway alone, thinking of what Mai had laid out in her rant.

In the night, two pairs of lips parted into two anticipatory smiles.

"Seto…"

"Mai…"

"It might take forever, but you WILL be mine!"


	4. Atticshipping

_Atticshipping ( Ryou x Mana )_

_A/N: I don't know if anyone could have read this far without realizing there will be AUness and occasional OOCness, but I'm warning you now anyway. The song Ryou starts singing is an Old Egyptian love song I stole from another book; the Ancient Egyptians used brother/sister as terms of love._

Ryou felt power pulse through him as his ka, now fully formed as a graceful creature of white light, solidified fully into being and stood battle-ready beside him. Maahado nodded slowly, obviously pleased, and Mana broke into wild applause.

"Well done, Ryou!" she cheered. Ryou blushed as he re-absorbed his ka and came over to the two magicians.

"You've improved your control and power marvelously, Ryou, especially considering how long you spent under demonic possession only half a year ago," the tall Egyptian priest said, smiling at his newest apprentice. "I can see you're tired, so why don't you and Mana take a midday break? We'll meet back here in an hour."

"Thank you, master." Ryou bowed deeply. Mana bobbed her head to their master as well before catching his hand with a laugh and pulling him along with her outside, causing him to blush even harder.

"Come on, let's sit somewhere we can see the Nile! I always love sitting somewhere where you can look down on the water and just…"

She continued chattering happily as she let go of his hand and skipped along ahead of him. Ryou watched her, smiling at her happy energy and marveling at how - good it felt to be here; when the spell that was holding the game of Zorc and the Pharaoh together had ceased he had at first been horrified, to be stranded in an Ancient Egyptian time a little while before the real events involving Thief King Bakura, Zorc and all the others took place. Then Maahado had found him and taken him in, listened to his wild stories and believe them, and begun setting up precautions. Aknadin had already been arrested for crimes against the Pharaoh and the destruction of Kul Elna, and so far the Thief King was nowhere to be found.

Had he changed history, or just created another version of it? Ryou didn't know, and as the days continued on - Maahado taking him as another apprentice, introducing him to Mana and teaching him how to reclaim his long-lost spiritual power - he found himself not caring. In fact, he had begun to pray that nobody would ever find him, that he could stay like this forever, with Maahado who had become more of a father to him than his absentee father had ever been, and Mana who was…

He caught up with her and took her hand, smiling at her; she smiled back, a pretty blush suffusing her cheeks now. He began to sing.

"My sister is like the persimmon tree…"

Watching them from the shade of the doorway, Maahado smiled.


	5. Talk and Talk

_Babbleshipping (Jounouchi x Kisara)_

_A/N: I just realized I haven't done a disclaimer yet. I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh - if I had, Marik and Bakura would've been long-lost friends from ancient times and Manipulashipping would be canon. But anyway, here's a little pairing that I actually kind of ship now I've tried it. _

"Don't be long, Jou!"

"I'll just be a minute!" he had called back, and now here he was - standing at Kisara's bedside, looking down at her unconscious form, a number of minutes had passed and he still didn't even know what he meant to do.

When in doubt, talk a lot, you might sort it out, he remembered someone saying once. Well, she couldn't hear him, even he had been visible in her world… it couldn't hurt, right?

"Hi." He felt awkward, talking to an unconscious girl who was technically dead for thousands of years, but pressed on. "Y'know… I saw you, earlier, when you were asking for water. You were really pretty, even though you looked so tired - do you know you're pretty? Everyone was treating you like you looked horrible. Well, don't worry, you're gorgeous. They just don't have any taste."

Awkward silence, and he struggled to fill it.

"Well anyway, it made me really mad when they threw rocks at you and treated you so bad. I mean, what did you ever do to them? Maybe I'm not one to talk, 'cause I used to beat people up for no reason, but… um, I've stopped now! I'm really working on getting better, you know? Just… at everything. Being a better person, and all. I don't try to hit people for no reason anymore. I did try to beat up the guys who threw stuff at you earlier, though. Couldn't, cause I'm on a different plane, but maybe that counts for something…"

He trailed off as he heard a door swing open far away.

"That's probably Priest Seth," he commented angrily. "I don't know why you like him, he's a jerk - ah, you probably have your reasons. Who am I to order you around, huh? I mean, you're here and I'm from the future and even if you're really beautiful and sweet and I hate the bastard for having you when I can't, there's no chance of anything hap- you know what, I'm going to stop talking now."

It was a good thing Priest Seth was not viewing the spiritual plane as he entered, as he would have witnessed something odd; a blonde-haired spirit leaning down to gently kiss the mouth of the woman on the bed and give her one last yearning look before slipping from the room.

Talk and talk and you'll figure it out.

"Damn you, Seto…"


	6. Bandaged

_Babbleshipping (Jounouchi x Kisara)_

_A/N: I just realized I haven't done a disclaimer yet. I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh - if I had, Marik and Bakura would've been long-lost friends from ancient times and Manipulashipping would be canon. But anyway, here's a little pairing that I actually kind of ship now I've tried it. _

"Don't be long, Jou!"

"I'll just be a minute!" he had called back, and now here he was - standing at Kisara's bedside, looking down at her unconscious form, a number of minutes had passed and he still didn't even know what he meant to do.

When in doubt, talk a lot, you might sort it out, he remembered someone saying once. Well, she couldn't hear him, even he had been visible in her world… it couldn't hurt, right?

"Hi." He felt awkward, talking to an unconscious girl who was technically dead for thousands of years, but pressed on. "Y'know… I saw you, earlier, when you were asking for water. You were really pretty, even though you looked so tired - do you know you're pretty? Everyone was treating you like you looked horrible. Well, don't worry, you're gorgeous. They just don't have any taste."

Awkward silence, and he struggled to fill it.

"Well anyway, it made me really mad when they threw rocks at you and treated you so bad. I mean, what did you ever do to them? Maybe I'm not one to talk, 'cause I used to beat people up for no reason, but… um, I've stopped now! I'm really working on getting better, you know? Just… at everything. Being a better person, and all. I don't try to hit people for no reason anymore. I did try to beat up the guys who threw stuff at you earlier, though. Couldn't, cause I'm on a different plane, but maybe that counts for something…"

He trailed off as he heard a door swing open far away.

"That's probably Priest Seth," he commented angrily. "I don't know why you like him, he's a jerk - ah, you probably have your reasons. Who am I to order you around, huh? I mean, you're here and I'm from the future and even if you're really beautiful and sweet and I hate the bastard for having you when I can't, there's no chance of anything hap- you know what, I'm going to stop talking now."

It was a good thing Priest Seth was not viewing the spiritual plane as he entered, as he would have witnessed something odd; a blonde-haired spirit leaning down to gently kiss the mouth of the woman on the bed and give her one last yearning look before slipping from the room.

Talk and talk and you'll figure it out.

"Damn you, Seto…"


	7. The Princess and the Hero

_Boxshipping ( Mokuba x Anzu )_

_I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. In fact, I've never watched it. _

_Yeah, you read that right… so this oneshot is actually based off my knowledge of the events through the Abridged series. I haven't seen a part like that in the manga, so you mike consider this an anime AU._

_With that said… aww, isn't Mokie cute?_

_The hero paced the confines of his terrible prison, a little worried by the overwhelming odds against him. _

Mokuba wandered around the storeroom he and Anzu were confined in, trying to evaluate their chances. Their kidnappers seemed to have every advantage; numbers, weapons…

_But he does not show his fears, for a beautiful princess is entrapped with him. The hero would have failed indeed if he showed weakness in front of her!_

"Mokuba, do you have any ideas about getting out? It looks bad…"

The black-haired boy honestly had no idea, but turned a bright smile to her nonetheless. "I'm sure there's a way, Anzu-chan."

Anzu did look the part of a princess, sitting dejected on the floor with her bright blue eyes upturned, chestnut hair framing her face softly and a golden ray of sunlight falling over her, lending a certain magic to her every feature. Mokuba continued to steal glances as her as he searched, getting distracted; he had always thought she was pretty, from the first time he'd seen her on the island…

_Truthfully, the hero has long since harbored feelings for this princess. But, alas! She is promised in marriage to a powerful pharaoh, and does not even know of the hero's affections. _

Mokuba forced his eyes away from Anzu, looking up instead and spotting something. "The skylight!" he said, pointing. "If we can pile boxes high enough, we could reach it!"

"I thought of that," Anzu replied sadly, not moving, "it's not big enough." The next moment her face brightened. "But - you're smaller, Mokuba! You could fit through!"

_Sometimes, even, the hero fears that the princess sees him as nothing more than a little boy._

In a few minutes the plan had been accomplished; Mokuba managed to get his elbows on the edge of the window, panting with exertion, and looked back at Anzu. "I'll get help and I'll be back to rescue you!" he promised with determination.

And for a moment she smiled, just for him, and the world seemed a little brighter. "Go for it," she said, and raises her hand in an odd, almost shy wave farewell. "And good luck."

_But sometimes, the hero thinks the princess maybe likes him back._

_Will this story have a happy ending?_

_So far, it is not known…_


	8. Dance Dance Dance

_Butterflyshipping ( Mai x Ryou x Anzu)_

_I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, but I'm saving up to buy Espa Roba. _

_I wrote this one really late at night, and I was trying out a different style. Can you tell?_

It was a strange dance, in a way, what the three of them had.

Perfectly timed, for the timing was very important; the girls had to enter at the right time for Ryou, or else the darker shadow in his soul would intervene and spoil the careful rhythm they had built.

So they would first watch out for the calm days, the nothing-happening days when Ryou would be at home or at the museum, locate the place of the dance and it would be time for the first step…

_Turn, slide in._

Anzu came first and more frequently, hitting the steady beat of it all like a familiar step repeating in a dance. Always knock, always take off her shoes in the hallway, walk on the balls of her feet to keep quiet, until finally she reached his workroom… she knew what her lines and patterns were. And then in his workroom she would find him sitting on the floor, the focal point of the whole thing; he would be surrounded by his miniatures and in a moment their simple waltz would become a dance of giants, as she set her feet sashay, side skip among the tiny houses and roads.

_Enter with a run, a leap and a twirl._

And Mai was the flavor of variety in their dance, bursting through the routine every time and drawing all three of them to improvise; she would arrive irregularly, enter without knocking, tease them into giving her a hug, make Ryou kiss her hand, play with Anzu's hair, and convince them sometimes to even move to another room. She cut steps short, threw in wild kicks and leaps, spun them both around in circles until they were dizzy, and they loved it.

Sometimes Anzu would feel a twinge of jealousy as she saw how boldly the blonde pressed in on Ryou's personal space, leaning in towards him as she laughed at something he said, but then Mai would turn and _quickstep, jump_ to sit beside her, engulfing her in the feeling of wild improvisation, and she would reflect that the changes really just improved the dance.

And sometimes, she wondered if Ryou even knew they were dancing around each other, uncertain of what position any of them held if they should stop. He always seemed so polite and unaffected - and then he'd throw her a secret smile, a kiss on the cheek, a squeeze of her hand, and in and out, change partners she'd know that he knew.

She? She just danced on. It had always been what she loved to do.

Especially if it was their dance.


	9. Thief In The Night

_Casteshipping ( Pharaoh Atem x Thief King Bakura )_

_If I owned Yu-Gi-Oh, Espa Roba would be a main character._

_I wrote this because it was really late and I get extremely crazy when I stay up late. So don't expect it to be plausible or serious in the slightest. I feel like I should apologize to Bakura, though…_

Sometimes, love sneaks up on you like a thief in the night.

Quite literally.

Atem's, specifically, lurked in his bedchamber until he had ordered everyone to leave him alone and entered, off his guard. And then proceeded to jump him.

The boy-pharaoh gave a muffled scream as a tanned hand was clamped over his mouth and he was pulled back into a warm body.

"Hush," a husky voice hissed in his ear, "or I'll just break your neck now and be done with it!"

The pharaoh wisely shut up and instead tried to sneak a look at whoever was holding him. To his shock it was a boy who could only be a year or two older than him, but who had a scar on his cheek that made him seem older.

"I'm Thief King Bakura," the boy said as if in response to his unrecognizing look, eyes narrowing angrily. "And you are the next of kin to the man who is responsible for the deaths of my village."

Atem stiffened in horror as Bakura brought his other hand into view; one holding a broad-bladed, sharp knife. He managed to twist out of Bakura's grasp and grab his hand, but his minute or two of struggling did nothing to help; Bakura finally pinned him on the bed, sitting on him to keep him down with sheer bodily weight, and leant down with a triumphant smile on his lips.

"You can't stop me, Pharaoh," he said, bringing his knife up. His bronzed face was tantalizingly close, lips parted slightly and blood-colored eyes boring into Atem's violet. At this point, the young pharaoh could only think of one thing to possibly save himself.

He wrapped his arms around Bakura's neck, jerking him down, and forced their mouths together. Bakura gave a muffled shriek, struggling, but Atem merely took the advantage to invade his mouth. The thief finally managed to break the other boy's hold, but made no move to attack him; instead making a beeline for the window, snatching up his knife on the way. Atem rose and went to the window to watch him go, panting in shock and relief. Gods be thanked, he had escaped with his life, even it had come at the price of his first kiss.

Bemusedly, he wondered if Maahado's had been this strange.

And he wondered why he was almost hoping to see the thief again.


	10. Life Is Good

_Chairoshipping ( Varon x Mana )_

_I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, but I DO own the ideas in these shorts. _

_Ra, I think this is the fluffiest thing I've ever written… but they're both such sweet, cute characters I couldn't bear to do something dark._

His buddies made fun of him, and often threatened to head to school without him, but he knew they never would.

They all liked what they saw of her too much - and they knew all they'd ever do was see, because if Varon saw one of them so much as hold his girlfriend's hand he'd duel them into next Sunday, and dueling with Varon was no joke. He took it seriously; if card gaming couldn't be a contact sport, he wasn't interested.

He was a lucky guy, Varon reflected, coasting to a halt in front of the shabby brown house where his most important person lived - an ugly exterior hiding a shining interior. He had good friends - even if Rafael was a bit of a pushover and Alister could be a jerk sometimes - he had a part-time job as a bodyguard for a successful businessman, he had his bike, his grades were okay, he was a formidable duelist…

The door slammed. "Sorry I'm late!" she called out, breathlessly laughing as she ran down the walk towards them. "Maahado needed help with something in his workshop… I think I messed my hair up all over again."

And, of course, he had a beautiful girlfriend… Mana. She reached the side of his motorcycle at his thought and they shared a brief kiss; he could tastes sunshine and cherries on her tongue as her soft hair brushed his face.

"Y'know, Varon, not trying to be sexist or anything… can I borrow her?" Alister asked wistfully. Varon broke the kiss, casting him a warning look as Mana laughed and gave the red-headed biker a friendly push on the arm. "C'mon, I was just asking!"

He chose to ignore his friend. "You look perfect," he told her instead. She gave a shy, quick smile, her brown face glowing with happiness.

"We gotta hurry or we'll be late for school," Alister informed them, starting his bike and peeling away. "See you there, lovebirds!"

Rafael started his bike as well, giving them a wink before he took off in the direction of school as well.

Mana settled her backpack more firmly and got on behind Varon, wrapping her slim tanned arms around his waist and pressing her face against his back with a contented sigh.

"Ready?" he asked, smiling as his engine roared to life.

"Ready!"

Life was good.


	11. Desert Chimes

_Chimeshipping (Thief King Bakura x Mai x Malik )_

_I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, or Egypt. Yet._

_I really enjoyed writing this one! I love putting Malik and Mai into the past._

The beads on the edge of the woman's head cloth clinked together, sounding almost like wind-chimes on the breeze rolling across the desert. She pulled it over her nose and mouth as the wind picked up, narrowing her eyes against flying grains of sand as she looked worriedly at the horizon; the sun was beginning to set. Had she been wrong in her calculations? She had been sure that they would come… this part of the desert unofficially belonged to them, and she had thought the sight of a strange woman wandering around would stir their curiosity… but here the sun was almost setting, with civilization miles away in every direction, and they were nowhere in -

Two figures on horseback were atop the nearest ridge, silhouetted against the sun. Looking up at them, the woman smiled; her luck was better than she thought, to draw both of them together.

They rode down from the ridge of sand, becoming visible as they did so; one a tall, broad-shouldered man with white hair that fell in untidy tresses around his tanned, scarred face; the other slimmer, his skin slightly darker, pale golden locks whipping back from his face as he turned his horse sharply. In a moment they were guiding their horses around her.

"And what is such an attractive young woman doing in the desert alone?" the taller white-haired one asked, his eyes moving appreciatively over her well-shaped body.

"King of Thieves, Bakura," she identified him, bowing deeply, then turned to look at the other. "Son of Ra, Marik. I am glad indeed to see both of you, for I came to the desert searching for you."

Raising her hand, she pulled the cloth from her head; golden curls tossed wildly in a passing wind, and violet eyes looked up at the two men. She raised her hand to an unsightly mark on her face, and saw Bakura unconsciously touch his scar.

"Until three days ago, I was a slave of the Pharaoh's court. In the time until my escape I have come to hate the Pharaohs bitterly, and I hold much information about the palace. After hearing of you - the Tomb Robber who defies the Pharaoh - and you - the former Tomb Keeper who now seeks to become Pharaoh - I dedicated myself to breaking free so as to join you."

They looked at each other over her head, and after a moment Marik shrugged. "There's nobody following her. She's telling the truth."

Bakura smiled slowly. "Welcome to our partnership…"

"Mai," she said clearly, accepting the hand Marik reached out to her.


End file.
